Suction cleaner



W. H. KITTO SUCTION CLEANER Oct. 22, 1935.

Filed July 13, 1934 lnqlv ATTORNEY Patented Oct. 22, 1935 UNITED STATES SUCTION CLEANER William H. Kitto, Canton, Ohio, assignor to The Hoover Company, North Canton, Ohio, a corporation o'f Ohio Application July 13, 1934, Serial No. 734,884 In Great Britain August 24, 1933 1 Claim.

The present invention relates to suction cleaners in general and particularly to a new and improved partition between the fan chamber and the motor casing of a suction cleaner.

5 It is an object of the present invention to provide a new and improved partition between `the fan chamber and the motor casing of a suction cleaner. Another object is the provision of a new and improved bearing mounting and protecting means in a suction cleaner. These and other more specic objects will appear upon reading the following specication and claim and upon considering in connection therewith the attached drawing to which they relate. Referring now to the drawing:

Figure 1 is a partial section through thel fan chamber and -the motor casing of a suction cleaner with the present invention embodied therein;

Figure 2 is a section similar to Figure 1 showing a slightly modied form of the invention;

Figure 3 is an illustration of the suction cleaner of the type in which the present invention is to be embodied.

The present inventiony comprises, in an electric suction cleaner, the combination with a partition wall which separates the fan chamber from the motor chamber and carries a bearing for the motor spindle which projects through an aperture therein, of a cooperating member secured to the partition wall and forming therewith not only a tubular housing for the bearing, formed or provided with end iianges for retaining it in place, but also a tubular projection extending into an annular groove in the back of the fan to form a labyrinth seal to exclude dust and foreign matter from the vicinity of the bearing.

Referring to Figure 1 in particular, the partition which separates the fan chamber from the motor casing is indicated by the reference character I, the motor casing being indicated by the reference character 2, while the fan chamber bears the reference character 3. At its center where it surrounds the fan bearing 4, the partition I is formed with a tubular cylindrical seat 5 which serves to seat the outer race of the bearing 4, being formed with an integral inwardly extending ilange at its inner or motor side. 'This inner ange prevents the bearing from shifting inwardly toward the motor casing.

Secured to the partition I by means of rivets 6, of which only one is shown in the drawing, is a pressed metal member I which is also formed with a tubular extension of the same size as portion 5 of the partition, with an inwardly projecting flange forming the forward limit of the tubular extension, and with a further tubular projection 8 of smaller diameter. The inwardly directed flange of member 1 serves to prevent the movement of the bearing towards the fan casing,

(Cl. B30-132) cooperating with the flange upon tubular portion 5 to definitely position the bearing through contacting the bearing seal member 9. The reduced diameter tubular projection 8 extends into a deep annular groove I0 formed upon the back of the 5 suction-creating fan II which is carried within fan chamber 3 upon the extended end of the motor shaft I2 carried by bearing 4. The annular groove cooperates with the cylindrical tubular pro- J'ectionv 8 to form a labyrinth to prevent the accu- 10 mulation of foreign material around the bearing.

As in the usual construction a. motor-cooling fan I3 may be mounted upon the shaft I 2 adjacent the bearing and in the motor and functions to draw air through the motor casing to cool the 15 driving motor positioned therein. The motor is not shown in the drawing, but may be of any common type.

In the modification of the invention shown in Figure 2 the construction is similar to that shown zo in Figure 1 but the partition I is cast and shaped to constitute the entire or complete surrounding wall for thefbearing. The cooperating plate member 1 is formed, according to this embodiment, as a substantially ilat plate which overlies the 25 fan chamber side of the tubular portion 5 of the partition, being formed at its central portion, however, with the projecting small diameter tubular portion 8 which cooperates with the annular groove I0 of the fan to form the labyrinth 30 as in the rst embodiment. At the inner or motor casing end of the bearing 4 a separate metal ring I4 is secured to tubular portion 5 and cooperates with plate 1 in'retaining the bearing in place. Ring I4 may be retained in any suitable 35 manner as by crimping the end of the portion 5 to overlie its outer peripheral edge.

I claim: In a suction cleanerhaving a motor casing andv a fan chamber separated by a common wall, there 40 being a driving motor in said casing the shaft of which extends thru said common wall into 4said fan chamber, and a fan having a circular channel in its back carried by said shaft in said chamber; a tubular bearing hbusing formedl cen- 45 trally in said common wall comprising a cylindrical wall surrounding said shaft, the end of said wall being defined by a ange perpendicular to said shaft, a ball bearing seated in said housing with its outer race held by said flange to 50 prevent movement of said bearing toward said motor, the fan chamber side of said housing being closed by a.' separate closure member secured to said common wall around said housing and which extends toward said shaft to a point beyond the 55 periphery of the outer race of/said bearing at which point it is formed as a cylindrical ange which extends into the circular channel on the back of said fan to form a labyrinth seal.

WILLIAM H. KITIO. 

